The Bet
by AyLee Cambell
Summary: Episode 2x03 The Bet. This is my version of how I think the date went. Chapter one is mostly what Tim might be thinking while on the date.


AN: Wow, it has been a very long time since I've posted something. I didn't know if I ever would again. (Who thought I was dead?) Anyway, it's an entirely new fandom. Sorry to everyone who is waiting for me to update a fic I wrote years ago. I can't promise that I will go back to them.

Hope you enjoy!

* * *

Tim Bradford is currently kicking himself for accepting the date.

The whole bet really. He just can't help but engage with Chen when she starts in on helping to set him up. He knows she wont drop it once she's got it in her mind that he needs help. If he's learned one thing about his rookie, it's that Lucy Chen can't help but dig herself into a situation if she thinks she's doing the right thing. And she wont give up, not even when there are consequences.

He would almost be proud, if it wasn't so damn annoying.

Still, she's gotten under his skin in a way none of his other rookies have. He may challenge her on a daily basis, but she challenges him right back. Most of the time his rookies are either too scared or too pissed off to do much to him.

But not Lucy Chen. No matter what he does to Chen, she moves passed it. It's almost impressive. He'll never admit it though, especially not to her face. She would never let him live it down.

So, because of the bet, Tim is sitting at dinner at Ravenna, one of his favorite restaurants, across from Rachel, Chen's friend.

"So, you've, uh - you've known Chen since -" He pauses and can't help himself from glancing to the right.

He knows his rookie.

He knows Chen's there, watching them on their date. Even if he could have missed her bright orange car sitting across the street on the curb, he knows her. He knew she would be there.

Still, he forces himself to only glance, looking away before she can realize he knows where she's at and that he's aware he's being watched.

"- I mean Lucy," he continues, a small smile pulling at his lips as he says her name, "since college?"

Rachel smiles while answering. "Yeah, we were in psych class together."

"Hmm. Bet she hasn't changed a bit." Tim comments.

He doesn't actually care about the date going well. Rachel is pretty, but he doesn't see anything happening between them. She's a social worker, he's a cop. If anything does happen, he doesn't see it lasting long term.

Still, it's his first date in a long time. He doesn't want to tank it.

"No." Rachel smiles, shaking her head. "Always playing matchmaker."

"Well, this is my favorite place. Best filet in town." Tim leans in, gesturing with his hand to reassure her about the good food.

"Oh, I don't eat red meat." Rachel tells him.

"Sea bass is great, too." He fires back automatically with a grin. He doesn't care what someone eats, as long as they don't care what he eats.

Rachel starts defensively, "Nothing that had a face." she tells him, while making a face at him. "I'm on a raw-food diet, actually. You know, reduce my imprint."

Tim can't help but wonder if Lucy knows Rachel is a vegan. It's not like it's a deal breaker but Rachel seems to have a bit of scorn for people that eat meat and that's not exactly going to go well on this date.

He muses briefly over the fact that Lucy never has a problem eating. As long as it's edible, he's seen her eat it. They don't have enough time to get picky while working. Not if they want to eat before another call comes through.

Tim shifts, glancing briefly to the right. Not long enough to give away that he knows where Lucy is, but enough to remind himself that he's not here because he actually wants to be here.

It's time to be honest and call an end to this fake date. After Rachel leaves, he'll go knock on Chen's car window. Let he know he won and warn her she'll be doing push ups all day tomorrow.

He leans forward. "Look, you seem nice and all, so I probably should just tell you the truth. I let Lucy set us up tonight because she made me a bet."

Rachel leans in, "And, um, you want her to lose." She says with a smile.

Lucy told her all about the bet. She's doing this date as a favor for her friend. But maybe she can still get something out of this for herself as well.

Tim immediately shakes his head as he speaks. "No." he denies, "I want me to win."

He doesn't want her to fail. He just wants to win. As weird as it may sound, there is a difference.

Rachel tries to hold back the laugh she can feel building inside her. "Being here with me isn't a win?" She teases him.

She may be doing Lucy a favor, but that doesn't mean she can't have some fun messing with him. As long as the date ends well, she's allowed to torture him a bit.

A smile pulls at Tim's lips. "Maybe a little." He admits. He can be charming. When he wants to be. He isn't a hardass all the time, just while he's on the clock.

"Mm-hmm. You know what would be a win for me?" Rachel leans in just a little while smiling. "If you could get me…" She pauses for a second, to build the suspense and drops the flirting tone from her voice while maintaining eye contact. "...a direct line to your watch commander so I could talk to him about civil standbys."

Tim can hear the sincerity in her voice, how much she cares about this.

He looks to his right, skimming Lucy's car briefly before looking away altogether. He nods a little in thought. He could help her with that. He runs his tongue over his lips then looks up at Rachel.

"I could do that." He tells her, nodding his head and shrugging his shoulders a little. He can get her the direct line. Grey may not like it, but he doesn't have to tell him where Rachel got his number. Even if Grey does figure it out, it's not like he'll get in trouble.

"Really?" Rachel asks, surprised. She knows Tim can't be all bad, even if he did seem like a jerk earlier. She knows her friend. Lucy wouldn't want to help Tim if he wasn't a good guy. Lucy would deal with him then avoid him whenever possible. The fact that Lucy is taking an interest in Tim's life is a huge indicator that she cares about her training officer.

Tim nods. "Yeah." She's going to help him win the bet. The least he can do is help her.

"And what would you want in return?" Rachel asks him, curious.

Tim smiles.

"I want you to get up, slap me, and walk inside. Then, you owe me at least 3 embarrassing stories about Chen." He tells her.

It's perfect. He'll win the bet, and he'll have something else to taunt his rookie with while she's doing push ups.

Rachel takes a moment to think about it. "Done." She says, a smile twisting at her lips. Lucy will forgive her. There may be margaritas involved but Lucy has never been great about holding grudges.

When Rachel slaps him, he's able to look to the right where Lucy is sitting in her car. He thinks he can almost see the look on her face. He can't of course, but it takes a lot not to smile anyway.

He waits a few minutes before he gets up from the table. Lucy has just pulled away from the curb and is driving off when he walks inside.

Rachel is waiting for him near the host stand.

"So, where do you want to go so I can tell you those stories?" Rachel questions him once he's close enough.

"Do you have a favorite bar?" Tim asks. She didn't exactly like the place he picked. It's her turn to choose.

"I know just the place. Follow me." Rachel says, turning to leave.

Tim waits a beat then follows her outside. He scans the area but Lucy's car is gone.

* * *

To be clear, Rachel is the one who makes the first move. She kisses him and invites him back to her house.

In the morning, he doesn't exactly regret his actions, but she's Chen's friend. Chen will eventually find out that she won and he lost.

But, there is still a chance she wont find out before he can make her do at least 300 push-ups. If she wants to wear those short sleeves, she's going to earn them.

He's just gotten out of the shower and is only wearing a towel when he rounds the corner and spots Lucy standing with Rachel at the door. He doesn't know why she's here, but that doesn't matter. It's obvious what happened last night, and the expression on her face says it all.

He feels a sinking feeling in his gut.

She is never going to let him forget that he lost the bet.

Fuck.


End file.
